Search

Uncategorized

IT staff climb to new educational, professional heights

We’re proud to report on the following IT folks who have furthered their educational and professional development in a variety of ways. Congratulations to all.

Andy Voelker (far right), a support analyst on the IT Client Services Student Computing team, received his B.S.B.A. in Computer Information Systems from WCU in May. In June, he and Jason LaVigne (near right), Student Computing team manager, co-presented two papers at the national ResNet Symposium 2009 conference held at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota. Their first presentation was on the change made by the Student Computing team from simply supporting student residence hall network ports and connections to providing more proactive, student-focused services. This change includes education through presentations, blogs, podcasts, posters, fliers, and handouts; an on-site help desk in the residence halls on a weekly basis; and a repair shop for all students. Their second presentation was on WCU’s conversion of student email to Microsoft Windows Live. Both sessions were well attended and well received.

Scott Koger, a security analyst in the networking and communication department, was the instructor for a CISSP Boot Camp held at WCU August 10-14, 2009. CISSP, Certified Information Systems Security Professional, is a globally recognized credential for information security professionals.

The class was held in the Educational Outreach training facilities in Camp Building and also was streamed live to participants on the Web. IT staff members who attended the training include Scott Swartzentruber, director of networking and communication services; Brian Bard, a systems analyst in systems and operations; and Neil Torda, the digital media specialist in the Coulter Faculty Center. Another WCU attendee was Internal Auditor Lisa Gaetano. According to Scott, there is interest in offering CISSP training at WCU on a recurring basis as a service for western North Carolina IT professionals and their employers.

Scott Koger also co-authored a recent article in a peer-reviewed journal, Information Security Journal: A Global Perspective. The article “Using the Private-Internet-Enterprise (PIE) Model to Examine IT Risks and Threats Due to Porous Perimeters” can be accessed online at http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a914064123.

On August 8, 2009, Akum Jamir, manager of the IT Client Services Desktop Support team, completed his Master of Project Management (M.P.M.) degree through WCU’s online degree program. Akum’s master’s project was on “Manual – Project Initiation” and his academic paper was titled “Project Management Practices by State and Local Governments.”

David Myers, a support analyst on the IT Client Services Help Desk team, completed his ACSP (Apple Certified Support Professional) for OS X 10.5 Support Essentials earlier this year.